Removable handle



Feb. 13, 1951 J. W. GUZEL REMOVABLE HANDLE Filed Sept. 29, 1948 INVENTOR JOHN W. GUZEL Patented Feb. 13, 1951 REMOVABLE HANDLE John w. Guzel, Cuddy, Pa.

Application September 29, 1948, Serial No. 51,811

2 Claims.

, l The removable handle of my invention is intended for use on containers, particularly flanged containers such as vegetable baskets, and

is adapted to be placed thereon and removed therefrom with speed and facility. Removable handles have been used in the past on flanged containers, but these handles had the disadvantage that they could not be readily flexed open and shut without the use of both hands of the operator or without pressing them sidewise against the container. My handle has the advantage that it may be readily opened and closed by the hand which grasps it, merely by thumb pressure on a projection adjacent the portion of the handle grasped by the hand.

My handle securely engages the flange of the container on which the handle is placed, and if my handle is left on a container, it will grip the sides of the container and not fall off.

My handle is of strong, durable and simple construction and may readily be fabricated and assembled.

In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated certain present preferred embodiments of my invention in which,

Figure 1 is an isometric View of a form of my handle mounted on a basket;

Figure 2 is a side view of the handle shown in Figure 1;

Figures 3 and 4 are end views from the left and right respectively of the handle shown in Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a side View of another form of my handle; and

Figure 6 is a sectional view on the lineVIVI in Figure 2.

One form of handle constructed in accordance with my invention is shown in Figures 14 and comprises an arched structure made up of a re silient steel element II and a stiff and relatively inflexible steel element I2. The element II extends in a curve toward and tangentially against an intermediate portion of the element I2, where the two elements are fastened rigidly together by bolts I3 and I4, and one end of the element I2 continues the curve to complete the arched structure. Flange engaging grippers are fastened at the ends of the arched structure, a gripper I5 being rigidly secured to the element II by a rivet H and a gripper It being rigidly secured to the element I2 by a rivet I 8. The heads of the rivets i1 and I8 adjacent the grippers I5 and 16 are flattened to permit the grippers to lie closely against the sides of a container. The grippers I5 and I6 are formed of short, flat lengths of steel and are curved concavely toward each other (as shown in Figure 6) on a radius equal approximately to half the distance between said grippers.

A handle attachment I9 is fastened to the element II at the center of the arched structure to provide a convenient place to grasp the handle.

An end of the element I2 extends tangentially from the element II to form a projection 2E1 'above and adjacent to the handle attachment I9, as shown in Figure 2.

projection 20 is to provide a convenient means for controlling the distance between the grippers I5 and I6. The projection 20 may readily be pressed down by the thumb of a hand gri ping the handle attachment I9, and as the pro jection 20 is pressed down, the flexible element I2 does not bend to any appreciable extent but the resilient element I I is caused to bend between the bolt I 4 and the handle I9 (see Figure 2). As a result, when the projection 25 reaches the position 20' shown in Figure 2, the gripper I6 .is moved away from the gripper I5 to the position I5 (assuming the handle attachment I9 toremain stationary), thereby opening the handle. The resilient element I I will cause the handle to close again when pressure on the projection 2c is released. In this way the handle may readily be opened and closed in order to engage and disengage the flange of a container when the handle is being placed on or container.

The handle 'may be placed on a container 291: having a flange 26?) as illustrated in Figure 1, with the grippers I5 and I6 positioned on opposite sides of the container under the flange 20b. The'distance between the grippers I5 and I6 is.

predetermined for the size of container on which the handle is to be used, so that resilient element II will cause the grippers I5 and I6 to press yieldably against opposite sides of the container. In this way the handle will hold itself in place on the container when the handle is released and is not held in place by hand. If the handle should be placed on a container having a flange thicker than the grippers I5 and I6, the portion of the elements I5 and I6 immediately above the grippers I5 and It would yieldably press against opposite sides of the flange to hold the handle in place, or the grippers I5 and It could be bent so that their ends would engage the sides of the container and hold the handle in place. The grippers I5 and I6 bear against the flange 20b to hold the handle upright while the handle is holding itself in place on the con- The purpose of this removed from a' tainer. When the attachment I9 is grasped by hand and the handle is lifted, the grippers l5 and I6 engage the lower edge of the flange 28b and thereby cause the container 253a to be lifted with the handle. When the handle is being placed on or removed from the container 261a, the grippers I5 and 16 are disengaged from the flange 2017 by pressing down on the projection 20. The projection 20 may readily and conveniently be depressed by the thumb of a hand grasping the handle attachment E9.

The form of my invention shown in Figure 5 operates in substantially the same way as the form of my handle shown in Figures 1-4, but itstwo principal structural elements comprise a curved element 2| of resilient steel to form the arched structure of the handle, and a. straight element 22 of stifi and. inflexible steel to form the projection which controls the arched structure of the handle. One end of the element 22 is rigidlyfastened tothe elementZl by bolts 23 and 24, and the other end of the element 22 extends tangentially above the" arched structure of the element 2| to provide a projection 30. A handle attachment 29 is secured at the center of the element 21 to facilitate grasping" the handle, and grippers 25 and 26 are secured at either end of the element 2| to engage the upper flange of a container. When-the projection 3B-is depressed by the thumb of a hand grasping the handle at 29, the handle will be flexed open as shown in dotted lines in Figure 5.

While the operation: of the handle shown in Figure 5 is substantially the same as that of the handleshown in Figure 2, the handle shown in Figure 5 is easier to construct because only one of the twosteel strips in the handle needs tobe curved to form the arched structure of the handle: The-other steel strip 22 may be cutfrom straight stock without further shaping or heat treatment.

Although I have illustrated and described a preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be recognized that changes in the details and arrangement disclosed may be madewithout' departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of theappended claims I claim:

1. A removable handle for a flanged container comprising spaced members engageable with opposite flanged sides of a container for lifting the container, a resilient arched structure secured to and extending between said members and'adapted to be grasped in the center by hand to lift a container engaged by said members, and a relatively' stifi member connected to. the: arched structure with a portion adjacent a central portion of the arched structure, said member being movable toward the arched structure by a hand grasping the center of the arched structure, to spread the arched structure and thereby to spread both of the spaced members out of engagement with the container while the handle is being placed on or removed from the container, and upon release of the stifi member the arched structure is adapted to spring back to narrow the spacing between the spaced members, to bring the spaced members into lifting engagement with the container when the handle is suitably held over the container, and to clamp the handle on the container when the handle is released after being put on the container.

2.. A removable handle for a container comprising spaced members engageable with opposite sides of the container for lifting the container, an arched structure secured to and extending between said members and having a central portion adapted to be grasped by hand to lift a container. engaged by said spaced members, and a relatively stiifv member having a portion spaced away from and above. a central portion of the arched structure when the handle is in lifting position, and having another portion rigidly fastened to the arched structure between one of said spaced members and said central portion of the arched structure, said arched structure being capable of resilient bending between its said central portion and where it is fastened to the relatively stifi member, whereby said relatively stifi member is movable toward the arched structure, said member being movable toward the arched structure by a hand grasping the center of the arched structure, to spread the arched structure and thereby to spread both of the spaced members out of engagement with the container while the handle is being placed on or removed from the container, andupon release of the stiff member REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Cleveland Jan. 27, 1891 Chapman Apr. 23, 1940 Number 

